Bob MARGOLIN - Hold Me To It 1999

Bob MARGOLIN - Hold Me To It 1999

Blues

Bob Margolin continues to pay homage to Muddy Waters with each record he cuts and this debut for Blind Pig is no exception. His slide playing is Waters to a tee while his songwriting chops stay firmly in the mold of what Waters himself would come up with, albeit less inspired. Margolin's band is a three-piece knockoff of the old Waters band with Tad Waleters blowing harp in the Little Walter tradition while drummer Wes Johnson supplies a solid Chicago beat, no frills or overplaying out of any of them. If you like your Chicago blues served up '50s style without a lot of technical niceties, this album's right up your alley.
By Cub Koda.
**
The Blind Pig Records debut from Steady Rollin' Bob Margolin, a long-time guitarist for Muddy Waters and presently working with Big Bill Morganfield (Waters's son, for anyone who doesn't know), is a delight. That's to be expected, in a way; anyone who works with the best and brightest Chicago has to offer is bound to be good. But the lack of surprise doesn't lessen the sheer pleasure of this album, which is chock-full of the best Chicago sound. Margolin's got a strong, tight guitar style that favors substance over flash and a rich voice that just about holds its own in his duet with Morganfield on "Wee Baby Blues." With concert favorites like the title track and "Slam 'Em Down," the instrumental "Consolation," which bridges the gap between Chicago and Eric Clapton, and the slow pounding of "Mean Old Chicago," Hold Me to It is an excellent example of the Chicago blues in general and of the strengths of Bob Margolin in particular.
By Genevieve Williams. AMG.
**
Bob Margolin- (Vocals, Guitar, Various Instruments);
Tad Walters- (Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica, Bass);
Big Bill Morganfield- (Vocals, Guitar);
Mark Kazanoff- (Harmonica);
Sherry Margolin- (Piano);
Wes Johnson- (Drums).
**
01. All You Left Behind 3:12
02. Hold Me To It 3:22
03. Mean Old Chicago 3:58
04. Slam 'Em Down 2:14
05. No Consolation 3:02
06. Consolation 3:30
07. Ice Or Fire 3:47
08. Lost Again 3:24
09. Hard Feelings 3:40
10. Not Dark Yet 5:07
11. Stick Out Your Can 3:35
12. Wee Baby Blues 4:41
**
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Bob MARGOLIN - All Star Blues Jam 2002

Bob MARGOLIN - All Star Blues Jam 2002

Blues

Bob Margolin, former lead guitar player for Muddy Waters, has assembled a stellar cast of Chicago musicians for All-Star Blues Jam. These are all longtime veteran players with pedigrees in Howlin' Wolf's and Waters' bands among others, with the exception of Mookie Brill on vocals, bass, and harmonica, who more than holds his own with this fine assemblage. The band is tight and well used to jamming, and this shows with their playing of these 15 songs that sound as if they come out of a Chicago blues handbook. Most of them are standards; however, such songwriters as Brook Benton and of course Margolin contributed a couple. A standout on the disc is the rendition of "Mean Old Chicago," which Margolin wrote on the way to Jimmy Rogers' funeral. This was recorded live, as were most of the cuts, at a gig he was doing in Salina. On this version of it he is joined on guitar by Jimmy D. Lane, who is Rogers' son. The couple of songs recorded with Hubert Sumlin were done at Margolin's house with the two of them picking and Brill joining in on acoustic guitar or harp. It has that wonderful live feel of spontaneous playing that has a true spirit to it.
By Bob Gottlieb.
**
This meeting of Muddy Waters Band alumni thrives on subtle turns of virtuosity. Session leader Margolin proves how beautifully he can approximate Waters’s soul-probing, staccato slide guitar as he adds its whinnying tone to Pinetop Perkins’s barrelhouse piano and voice on "Sweet (Little) Black Angel." Harp legend Carey Bell puts a sharp edge on "One Day You’re Gonna Get Lucky," spitting out lyrics and letting his harp rock the melody. And drummer Willie "Big Eyes" Smith incites the Elmore James-inspired shuffle "Always on My Mind," shouting and pounding out its heartbreak as Margolin slides again. "Last Time" is a rare acoustic showcase for guitarist Hubert Sumlin. And there’s room for newcomers, too. Jimmy D. Lane picks slow and easy like his dad, the late Jimmy Rogers, on "Mean Old Chicago," and Margolin’s bassist Mookie Brill comes off as an MVP, offering laid-back propulsion throughout and singing his campy original "My New Baby Owns a Whiskey Store." Together they all raise the spirit of great early Chicago blues so effectively that, if not for its excellent sound, this album could have been cut in the late 1950s.
By Ted Drozdowski.
**
Bob Margolin- (Vocals, Guitar);
Tom Brill- (Vocals, harmonica);
Hubert Sumlin, Jimmy D. Lane- (Guitar);
Carey Bell- (Harmonica);
Pinetop Perkins- (Piano);
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith- (Drums).
Mookie Brill- (Vocals, Harmonica, Bass);
**
01. Brutal Hearted Woman
02. Sweet (Little) Black Angel
03. One Day You're Gonna Get Lucky
04. I'll Take Care of You
05. Juke
06. Mean Old Chicago - Jimmy D. Lane, Bob Margolin
07. Always on My Mind
08. Easy to Love You
09. Last Time
10. Maybe the Hippies Were Right
11. Country Boy
12. Crazy 'Bout You Baby
13. My New Baby Owns a Whiskey Store
14. Goin' Down Slow
15. Just a Closer Walk With Thee
**
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Bob MARGOLIN - Chicago Blues 1991

Bob MARGOLIN - Chicago Blues 1991

Blues

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
I have always liked Bob, I have been a fan of his since his day's with the great Muddy Waters. This is his second solo album, It has an all-star line up of old members of Muddy's band's. Including : Jimmy Rogers, Kim Wilson, Pinetop Perkins, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith & Calvin "Fuzz" Jones, all that is missing is Muddy himself. That is where Bob picks up he plays slide like a mad man, they say his seven years with Muddy he learned more than any one else about Muddy's style. This is Chicago blues at it's best, Bob's vocals fit right in. The songs and players are superb, this is very hard to find on cd. It came out in 1990 on cd, so it was an excellent find for me. It also is a long player, I have all of Bob's cd's this is the best so far, I also think (Up & In) is great, both worth a listen.
By Ronnie Cowlishaw Sr.
**
Best known for his association with Muddy Waters in the 1970s, Steady Rollin' Bob Margolin is reunited with three other former Waters sidemen on this inspired solo effort: pianist Pinetop Perkins, bassist Calvin "Fuzzy" Jones, and drummer Willie "Big Eyes" Smith. The title sums it up -- the album may have been recorded in various parts of the South, but the style is pure, unadulterated Chicago blues. A number of gutsy originals are included (most notably, "She and the Devil" and "Born in the Wrong Time") along with such time-honored Muddy Waters classics as "Mean Disposition," "She's So Pretty," and "Rollin' and Tumblin." As enjoyable as the band recordings are, the most inspired offering is the unaccompanied solo number "Born in the Wrong Time." On this under-produced, demo-quality recording, Margolin rants and raves about life in the early '90s and says some gut-level things that desperately needed to be said.
By Alex Henderson, All Music Guide*
**
Pinetop Perkins- Piano
Jimmy Rogers- Guitar
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith- Drums
Mark "Kaz" Kazanoff- Harmonica, Saxophone
Bob Margolin- Guitar, Vocals, Main Performer
Kim Wilson- Harmonica
Peter Bonta- Piano
Tom "Mookie" Brill- Bass
Calvin "Fuzz" Jones- Bass
**
01. She's So Pretty 
02. She and the Devil 
03. Steady Rollin' Man 
04. Sugar Sweet 
05. Something Inside of Me 
06. Dust My Broom 
07. Wee Wee Baby 
08. Rollin' and Tumblin' 
09. Mean Disposition 
10. Tribute to Howlin' Wolf 
11. Not What You Said Last Night 
12. Welcome Home 
13. Telephone Answering Machine 
14. Born in the Wrong 
**
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Bob MARGOLIN - Up & In 1997

Bob MARGOLIN - Up & In  1997

Blues

Former Muddy Waters sideman and current Blues Revue magazine columnist Bob Margolin brings his encyclopedic knowledge of blues and chops galore with him on this, his third album for Alligator. Ten of the 14 selections are penned by Margolin, with selected covers of material from Bobby Charles, Grady Jackson, Snooky Pryor and Gladys Knight and the Pips rounding out the mix. This time around Margolin stretches his musical boundaries into new directions, adding to his already wide range of blues subgenres. The title track is a solid homage to Chuck Berry, while Grady Jackson's "Coffee Break" is the kind of atmospheric, sax-driven track that would have fit perfectly on any Aladdin blues-after-hours 10-inch album. "Imagination" gets a true soul workout, as does "The Window," with its funky lead fills. His guitar tone can sometimes get positively trashy and as distorted as any old blues 78 you've ever heard, as on "Alien's Blues" and "Blues For Bartenders" while the cleaner side of his playing comes up for air on "'Bout Out," "Not What You Said Last Night," and the jazzy "Long Ago and Far Away." Margolin turns in a dead-on Muddy Waters slide guitar impression in a duet turn with former Waters piano man Pinetop Perkins on "She and the Devil" while turning in fine slide work on "Goin' Back Out on the Road" and "Why Are People Like That?" As a vocalist, Margolin is still in the passable category; he sings in tune, but seldom displays the kind of passion that earmarks the best of his guitar work. Still, this is his best solo turn to date, with solid playing from guests Kaz Kazanoff, Dave Maxwell and a host of others.
By Cub Koda.
**
Bob Margolin- Vocals, Guitars, Electric Bass
Sweet Betty- Vocal on Coffee Break
Pinetop Perkins- Piano on She And The Devil, Not What You Said Last Night and Later For You
David Maxwell- Piano on Alien's Blues, Blues For Bartenders, Up And In, 'Bout Out and Just Because; Organ on The Window
Kaz Kazanoff- Saxes and Horn Arrangements; Harmonica on Later For You
Gary Slechta- Trumpet on The Window, Up And In, 'Bout Out and Just Because
Chris Carroll- Electric Bass on The Window, Imagination and Why Are People Like That?
Tad Walters- Electric Bass on Goin' Back Out On The Road, and Not What You Said Last Night; Harmonica on Blues For Bartenders
Ron Brendle- Acoustic Bass on Long Ago And Far Away
Chuck Cotton- Drums on The Window, Alien's Blues, Imagination, Blues For Bartenders, Goin' Back Out On The Road, Up And In, 'Bout Out and Just Because
Wes Johnson- Drums on Not What You Said Last Night and Later For You
Jim Brock- Drums on Imagination, Why Are People Like That? and Long Ago
**
01. Window    2.57
02. Alien's Blues    2.28
03. Imagination    5.49
04. She And The Devil    5.07
05. Blues For Bartenders    4.52
06. Why Are People Like That    2.46
07. Goin' Back Out On The Road    3.15
08. Up And In    2.57
09. Coffee Break    5.09
10. Bout Out    2.34
11. Not What You Said Last Night    2.49
12. Long Ago And Far Away    3.26
13. Just Because    3.54
14. Later For You    4.19
**
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